Anti-aircraft
cruiser CURACOA was escorting convoy WN.19 Fast when it
was attacked by German aircraft at dusk.
Stragglers from WN.19 Slow were also machine gunned in
this raid.

_____

Destroyers
JACKAL, KASHMIR, JUPITER departed Rosyth at 0200 for
Plymouth for duty in the Western Approaches.

_____

Destroyer
VERSATILE departed Invergordon at 1530 with British
steamer ULSTER MONARCH. Both arrived in the Clyde
at 2100/2nd.

_____

Convoy
OB.222 departed Liverpool escorted by destroyers SABRE,
WALKER and corvettes COREOPSIS and MALLOW from the 1st
to 4th and anti-submarine trawlers ST APOLLO and SPHENE
from 1st to 5th.

_____

Convoy
FN.296 departed Southend, escorted by destroyer
WESTMINSTER and sloop EGRET, and arrived at Methil on
the 3rd.

_____

Convoy
FS.297 departed Methil, escorted by destroyers VANITY
and WOLFHOUND, and arrived at Southend on the 3rd.

_____

Off
Cape Barfleur, submarine SWORDFISH (Lt P J Cowell)
attacked the four German torpedo boats returning from
laying minefield WERNER off Dover. SWORDFISH
claimed sinking one of the torpedo boats, but none were
damaged.

_____

Submarine
H.49 (Lt M A Langley) attacked a German convoy of six
merchant ships off Texel.

_____

Minesweeper
BRITOMART and minesweeper trawler RETAKO (245grt) were
in a collision in the Firth of Forth. BRITOMART
was repaired at Leith, completed on the 18th.

_____

U.32
attacked Dutch steamer HAULERWIJK (3278grt) in
54-28N, 26-33W, and later sank her with gunfire in
53-34N, 27-28W. There were 27 survivors.

_____

U.38
sank British steamer HIGHLAND PATRIOT
(14,172grt) in 52‑20N, 19‑04W. Three crew were
lost. There were 141 survivors.

departed
Scapa Flow at 1230 to cover convoy HX.74 A. The convoy
was attacked by German bombers which dropped two
torpedoes, but both torpedoes missed. Steamer TREHATA
(4817grt) was damaged by German bombing off Peterhead in
convoy HX.74 A. CURACOA arrived back at Scapa Flow that
evening.

_____

Destroyers
HAVOCK and HASTY, returning to Alexandria from convoy AN
4 escort, sank Italian submarine BERRILO south
of Crete in 33‑09N, 26‑24E. Forty five crew were
rescued. HASTY and HAVOCK joined the Main Fleet at noon
on the 2nd and proceeded to Alexandria.

_____

Early
on the 2nd, light cruisers ORION and SYDNEY bombarded
Maltezana in Stampalia. The ships arrived back at
Alexandria on the 3rd.

_____

The
British Mediterranean Fleet arrived back at Alexandria.

_____

Heavy
cruiser DEVONSHIRE (Flagship Vice Admiral John
Cunningham) with destroyers FAULKNOR, FORESIGHT, FURY,
ESCAPADE departed Freetown for Duala, Cameroons arriving
on the 4th with Dutch liner WESTERNLAND (16, 469grt),
carrying 1564 tons, French sloops COMMANDANT DOMINE and
COMMANDANT DUBOC. When
agreement could not be reached between De Gaulle and the
British command on operations, the destroyers returned
to Freetown.

SHEFFIELD
turned the convoy over to heavy cruiser CUMBERLAND on
the 13th. The convoy arrived at Freetown on the 16th.

_____

After
D/F readings of a probable enemy ship sixty miles off
Bergen, battlecruiser HOOD, heavy cruisers BERWICK and
NORFOLK, available destroyers at Scapa Flow were brought
to one hour's notice. Destroyer MATABELE was recalled
from Moray Firth patrol and arrived at Scapa Flow at
1420.

_____

Convoy
OB.223 departed Liverpool escorted by destroyer
SCIMITAR, corvettes HEARTSEASE and COREOPSIS,
anti-submarine trawlers KING SOL and ST ZENO. Corvette
HEARTSEASE was detached on the 5th and the other escort
ships on the 6th.

_____

Destroyer
CLEVELAND arrived at Scapa Flow at 1300 to work up prior
to joining the Nore Command.

Convoy
FS.299 departed Methil, escorted by destroyer VERDUN and
sloop LOWESTOFT. The convoy arrived at Southend on the
4th.

_____

Armed
patrol trawler FORFEIT (262grt) attacked a submarine
contact at 1500/2nd in 57-42N, 3-52W. Destroyers DUNCAN
and ISIS departed Scapa Flow to arrive before dawn on
stations - ISIS 18 miles 315° from Kinnaird Head, DUNCAN
15 miles 315° from Clythness. The destroyers left Moray
Firth that evening and returned to Scapa Flow.

_____

Destroyers
BRILLIANT, BEAGLE, BULLDOG arrived at Rosyth as
replacements for the 5th Destroyer Flotilla destroyers
sent to the Western Approaches.

Convoy
SL.50 departed Freetown escorted by armed merchant
cruiser PRETORIA CASTLE to 16 October and armed merchant
cruiser ALCANTARA for the day only. On 21 October,
destroyer CLARE and corvettes ANEMONE and CLEMATIS
joined the convoy and on the 25th, anti-aircraft ship
CURACOA joined. The convoy arrived at Liverpool on the
26th.

Anti-aircraft
cruiser CAIRO departed Rosyth to provide anti-aircraft
support for convoy OA.224 as far as Scapa Flow. At Scapa
Flow, CAIRO embarked stores before going to the Western
Approaches Command.

_____

Convoy
OA.224 departed Methil, escorted by sloop HASTINGS and
corvette PEONY. Corvette PEONY was detached on the 5th.
Anti-submarine yacht PHILANTE joined on 6 September.
Later that day HASTINGS and the yacht were detached.

_____

Convoy
FN.299 departed Southend, escorted by destroyers VANITY
and WOLFHOUND. The convoy arrived at Methil on the 6th.

_____

Convoy
FS.300 departed Methil, escorted by destroyer VIVIEN and
sloop LONDONDERRY. The convoy arrived at Southend on the
6th.

_____

Destroyer
ASHANTI departed Rosyth to cover convoy EN.7. ASHANTI
departed Methil at 1000 and proceeded with the convoy to
Duncansby Head. The destroyer then returned to Rosyth.

_____

British
tug SIRDAR (34grt) was sunk by German bombing in
Long Reach, River Swale.

_____

Submarine
TRITON sank Italian steamer FRANCA FASSIO
(1858grt) 16 miles 97° from the Semaphore at Capo Noli
in the Gulf of Genoa. TRITON also shelled shore
installations off Vado and Savona. She unsuccessfully
attacked Italian steamer SPEZIA (1825grt) in Vado Roads
on the 8th.

Submarine
TETRARCH attacked an Italian merchant ship in the Gulf
of Genoa without success.

_____

Destroyer
WISHART escorted troopship NEURALIA to Lisbon to embark
British subjects and Polish troops from France. The
destroyer waited outside territorial waters and escorted
the troopship back to Gibraltar after embarkation.

_____

Italian
steamer NINA BIANCHI (2180grt) was lost in a
collision with Italian steamer VELOCE (5464grt) off
Brindisi in 40‑27N, 18‑24E.

_____

Convoy
HX.78 departed Halifax escorted by Canadian destroyer
ASSINIBOINE and auxiliary patrol ships FRENCH, HUSKY and
REINDEER. FRENCH returned to Halifax at 1845.

ASSINIBOINE
departed the convoy at 1850/5th. Ocean escort was armed
merchant cruiser JERVIS BAY, which was detached on the
14th.

On
14 October, destroyers ANTHONY and VERITY joined the
convoy. Destroyer ARROW, sloop ROCHESTER, corvettes
CALENDULA and CAMELLIA joined on the 15th. ANTHONY and
ARROW were detached on the 18th. The convoy arrived at
Liverpool on the 18th. Anti-aircraft cruiser CURACOA
provided protection for the east ships of this convoy on
19 and 20 October.

_____

Light
cruiser DURBAN departed Hong Kong.

Saturday,
5 October

Anti-aircraft
cruiser CURACOA departed Scapa Flow at 1030 to provide
anti-aircraft support for convoy WN.20 from Pentland
Firth to the Firth of Forth. She then proceeded to
Rosyth.

_____

Convoy
OB.224 departed Liverpool escorted by destroyer SKATE,
sloop DEPTFORD, corvettes ANEMONE, ERICA, PICOTEE.
Anti-submarine trawlers PENTLAND FIRTH and STELLA
CAPELLA joined on the 6th and were detached on the 8th
along with destroyer SKATE. The corvettes were detached
on the 9th and the sloop on the 12th.

_____

Convoy
FN.300 departed Southend, escorted by destroyers WALLACE
and WATCHMAN. The convoy arrived at Methil on the 7th.

_____

Convoy
FS.301 departed Methil, escorted by destroyers VEGA and
VIMIERA. The convoy arrived at Southend on the 7th.

Convoy
BS.6 departed Suez, escorted by sloops CLIVE and
GRIMSBY. The sloops were detached on 11 November when
joined by light cruiser LEANDER and sloops AUCKLAND,
HINDUSTAN, YARRA. Light cruiser HOBART joined on the
13th. The convoy was dispersed off Aden on the 13th.

U.37
badly damaged British tanker BRITISH GENERAL (6989grt)
in 51‑42N, 24‑03W. The next morning, U.37 attacked again
and this time sank her. The entire crew was missing.
Destroyer HARVESTER was searching for this British
steamer, but was unable to locate her.

_____

U.103
sank Norwegian tanker NINA BORTHEN (6123grt) in
54‑00N, 26‑00W.

_____

U.123
sank British steamer BENLAWERS (5943grt) in
53‑20N, 26‑10W. Twenty three crew and the naval gunner
were lost. The survivors were rescued by British
steamers BENGORE HEAD (2609grt) and FOREST (4998grt).

_____

Drifter
SCOTCH THISTLE (84grt) was lost after stranding in the
Thames Estuary.

_____

Steamer
HULL TRADER (717grt) was damaged by German bombing in
the London Docks.

_____

Steamer
FIRECREST (538grt) was damaged by German bombing two and
a half miles southwest of Sunk Light Vessel, Thames
Estuary.

_____

Destroyer
VIDETTE departed Gibraltar escorting storeship CITY OF
AUCKLAND for Alexandria, via Durban. The destroyer
detached at dark on the 7th.

Yugoslavian
steamer VIDO (1919grt) was sunk on a mine
eighteen kilometres east of Sulina.

Monday,
7 October

Anti-aircraft
ship ALYNBANK joined convoy HX.75 A on meeting in
Pentland Firth at 1100. She remained with the convoy
until midnight, then proceeded to Scapa Flow.

_____

Destroyer
BEDOUIN departed Rosyth at 0600 for Portsmouth to
deammunition. She then proceeded to Southampton to
refit.

_____

The
Liverpool section of Convoy WS 3 departed Liverpool with
troopships ORONTES (20,097grt), DUCHESS OF YORK
(20,021grt), MONARCH OF BERMUDA (22,424grt) escorted
locally by destroyers ARROW, ACHATES and WHITEHALL which
had departed Londonderry on the 7th.

The
two sections joined on the 12th and arrived at Freetown
on the 18th. They departed Freetown on the 20th and
arrived at Capetown on the 28th.

_____

Convoy
OB.225 departed Liverpool with destroyer SHIKARI and
corvettes CLARKIA and PERWINKLE. The escort was detached
on the 10th.

_____

Convoy
FN.302 departed Southend, escorted by destroyer VIVIEN
and sloop LONDONDERRY. The convoy arrived at Methil on
the 9th.

_____

Convoy
FS.303 departed Methil, escorted by destroyer WINCHESTER
and sloop EGRET. The convoy arrived at Southend on the
9th.

_____

Once
again, the LUCID operation was attempted with mainly the
same force as was deployed on 3/4 October, but without
MYTILUS. Destroyer HAMBLEDON (Cdr S. H. Carlill; Captain
A. W. S. Agar embarked) was mined and badly damaged in
51‑08N, 01‑21E near South Foreland.

She

was taken in towed by destroyer VESPER. The LUCID
operation was again cancelled. HAMBLEDON was repaired at
Chatham completing on 14 May 1941.

_____

Lt
M. C. Hoskin and Temporary Lt (A) T. E. Rose-Richards
were killed when their Walrus of 765 Squadron was shot
down seven to eight miles south of Anvil Point.

_____

Submarine
TRIBUNE after returning from a patrol in Biscay with a
defect was repaired at Ardrossan from 7 October to 26
October and in the Clyde from 12 November to 26
November.

During
the night of 7/8 October, Italian destroyers VIVALDI, DA
NOLI and TARIGO laid mines off Cape Bon. Destroyer HYPERION
was later lost on this minefield.

_____

During
the night of 7/8 October, Dutch liner WESTERNLAND put
troops ashore off Manoko at the mouth of the Duala
River. This operation was covered by heavy cruiser
DEVONSHIRE and light cruiser DRAGON. DRAGON grounded
briefly on the 7th.

_____

German
armed merchant cruiser PINGUIN captured Norwegian tanker
STORSTAD (8998grt) in the Indian Ocean at 15‑07S,
107‑50E. Thirty of the crew were repatriated to Norway.
STORSTAD was renamed PASSAT for German use as an
auxiliary to PINGUIN, and arrived in Gironde on 4
February 1941 with some of the crew from steamers
AUTOMEDON and MAIMOA.

Tuesday,
8 October

Anti-aircraft
cruiser CURACOA departed Rosyth at 0830 to overtake
convoy OA.226 and give them anti-aircraft cover until
midnight. She then proceeded to Scapa Flow arriving at
0720/9th.

_____

Light
cruiser DUNEDIN departed Greenock after refitting there
in September and October.

_____

Destroyer
MASHONA departed Greenock after refitting at 1840. She
arrived at Scapa Flow at 1630/9th.

_____

Destroyer
ESKIMO sank a floating British mine in 59-07N, 3-56W at
1200 in the Fleet exercise area.

Convoy
FN.303 departed Southend, escorted by destroyers VEGA
and VIMIERA. The convoy arrived at Methil on the 10th.

_____

Convoy
FS.304 departed Methil, escorted by destroyer WOOLSTON
and sloop BLACK SWAN. The convoy arrived at Southend on
the 10th.

_____

Submarine
TRIDENT and U.31 were in a gun duel in the Bay of
Biscay. TRIDENT missed U.31 with torpedoes, but hit the
German submarine with gunfire, doing minor damage.

_____

Minesweeper
KELLET was damaged in a collision with the West Pier at
Granton. She repaired at Rosyth in October.

_____

Gunboat
LOCUST struck a mine three and a half cables north of N.
W. Shingles Beacon, and was seriously damaged. She was
able to proceed under her own power until weather
deteriorated when she was taken in tow.

LOCUST

repaired at Tilbury, completing on 7 January 1941.

_____

U.58
badly damaged steamer CONFIELD (4956grt), a
straggler from convoy HX.76, in 56‑48N, 10‑17W, and then
sank her before noon on the 9th. One crewman was lost.

_____

Steamer
BELLONA II (840grt) was hit by German bombing four
miles east of Gourdon, Kincardineshire, then went ashore
at Streathlethan Bay, south of Stonehaven. Six crew and
three cargo workers were lost.

_____

Troopship
ORONSAY (20, 043grt) of convoy WS 3 was damaged by
German bombing 56‑00N, 10‑00W, and forced to leave the
convoy, escorted by armed merchant cruiser CHESHIRE and
destroyers ARROW and OTTAWA. ORONSAY was joined by
anti-aircraft cruiser CAIRO which took her safely into
Lough Foyle.

Destroyer
SABRE departed Londonderry to join the damaged
troopship. CAIRO, armed merchant cruiser CHESHIRE,
destroyers DOUGLAS, VISCOUNT and SABRE escorted the
troopship to the Clyde arriving at 0937 on the 9th.
Destroyer VERITY was also signalled to escort ORONSAY,
but was unable to join.

_____

US
Destroyer Divisions 68 and 71 destroyers were
transferred to the Royal Navy under Lend Lease.

US
Name

British
Name

Commanding
Officer

USS
SATTERLEE (DD.190)

HMS
BELMONT

Cdr
P J Fitzgerald Rtd

USS
MASON (DD.191)

HMS
BROADWATER

Cdr
C H de H Bell RD RNR

USS
HUNT (DD.194)

HMS
BROADWAY

Lt
Cdr T Taylor

USS
BRANCH (DD.197)

HMS
BEVERLEY

Cdr
E F Fitzgerald Rtd

USS
AULICK (DD.258)

HMS
BURNHAM

Lt
Cdr J Bostock

USS
LAUB (DD.263)

HMS
BURWELL

Lt
Cdr S.R J Woods RNR

USS
MCLANAHAN (DD.264)

HMS
BRADFORD

(Lt
Cdr M. T. Collier)

USS
EDWARDS (DD.256)

HMS
BUXTON

(Lt
Cdr The Earl Beatty (Emgcy)

On
15 October, BEVERLEY, BELMONT, BROADWAY, BROADWATER,
BURNHAM and BRADFORD departed St Johns and arrived at
the Clyde on the 26th going on to Plymouth arriving on
28 and 29 October.

BUXTON
departed with the group, but had to return with defects
arriving at St Johns on the 16th, and did not make the
Atlantic crossing until September 1941 after a major
refitting at Boston. BURWELL departed after the rest of
her group and arrived at Devonport on 11 November.

_____

Convoy
HX.79 departed Halifax at 1330 escorted by Canadian
destroyer SAGUENAY and auxiliary patrol boats FRENCH and
REINDEER. Convoy commodore was on steamer SALACIA
(5495grt). Patrol boat FRENCH departed convoy at dusk
and destroyer SAGUENAY departed convoy at 1400/9th.

Ocean
escort was armed merchant cruiser MONTCLARE and Dutch
submarine O.14, which were detached on the 18th. Armed
merchant cruiser ALAUNIA later supplemented escort.
After the convoy duty, O.14 arrived at Rothesay on the
29th.

On
19 October, destroyers STURDY and WHITEHALL, escort ship
JASON, corvettes ARABIS, COREOPSIS, HIBISCUS,
anti-submarine trawlers BLACKFLY and LADY ELSA joined
the convoy. The escort ship and the trawlers were with
the convoy only on the 19th. Destroyer SARDONYX joined
on the 20th. Corvette COREOPSIS was detached on the
22nd. The convoy arrived at Liverpool 23 October.

_____

German
armed merchant cruiser THOR sank steamer NATIA
(8715grt) in the South Atlantic at 00‑44N, 32‑12W. Two
crew were lost, eighty three crew and the naval gunner
were made prisoners of war.

_____

German
trawler HECHT (222grt) was sunk by enemy action.

_____

During
the night of 8/9 October, German torpedo boats GREIF,
SEEADLER, KONDOR, FALKE, WOLF and JAGUAR operated off
the Isle of Wight.

At
Messina was the 4th Cruiser Division, light cruisers
DIAZ and GIUSSANNO. Under repair were light cruisers
BANDE NERE, CARDONA at Spezia, and DI BARBIANO at Pola.

Four
Italian battleships and their covering forces were at
sea during the passage of Convoy MF 3.

On
10 October, destroyers JERVIS, JUNO, ILEX were sent
ahead of the fleet to investigate a submarine contact
reported by aircraft.

At
1715 on the 10th, battleship RAMILLIES and destroyer
NUBIAN, HERO, HEREWARD were detached to refuel at Malta.
At 1800, destroyers HYPERION, HASTY, ILEX were also
detached to refuel.

Destroyer
DEFENDER attacked a submarine contact at 1825.

_____

Heavy
cruiser SHROPSHIRE arrived at Aden and joined the Red
Sea Force. In December, she returned to the East Indies
Command.

_____

Australian
light cruiser ADELAIDE arrived back at Sydney from
Noumea, having departed on the 5th.

Wednesday,
9 October

Aircraft
carrier FURIOUS departed Scapa Flow at 0800 with
destroyers ESKIMO and MATABELE to strike at Bodo. Poor
weather conditions forced the operation to be cancelled
and the ships arrived back at Scapa Flow at 1630.

Convoy
FN.304 departed Southend, escorted by destroyers
VALOROUS and WESTMINSTER. The convoy arrived at Methil
on the 11th.

_____

Destroyer
VIMY departed Londonderry at 1400 for Portsmouth for
refitting.

_____

Destroyer
VERSATILE departed Londonderry at 0900 for Rosyth on
passage to the Tyne for refitting. Defects forced her to
return to Londonderry.

_____

Midshipman
D. A. C. Hadingham, in a Whitley of RAF 77 Squadron from
Topcliffe, was killed returning from a raid over Germany
when the plane flew into high ground west of Snape.

_____

Convoy
HG.45 of forty nine ships departed Gibraltar escorted by
local escort destroyers HOTSPUR, FIREDRAKE and WISHART.
Troopship NEURALIA departed with the convoy with 1093
Gibraltar civilians. She was detached and proceeded
unescorted to Kingston.

WISHART
was detached on the 10th and HOTSPUR and FIREDRAKE
escorted the convoy until 15 October. Escort vessel
GLEANER escorted the convoy from 9 to 27 October.

On
17 October, armed merchant cruiser PRETORIA CASTLE from
convoy SL.50 joined the convoy and remained with it
until 27 October. On 20 October, sloop FLEETWOOD joined
the convoy and escorted it until 27 October.

Destroyer
ANTELOPE and corvette MALLOW from convoy OB.230 joined
the convoy on the 21st and escorted it until 27 October.
Destroyers HAVELOCK, HESPERUS and SKEENA escorted the
convoy from 22 to 27 October, which arrived at Liverpool
on the 27th.

_____

U.103
attacked convoy SC.6, sank Greek steamers ZANNES
GOUNARIS (4407grt) and DELPHIN (3816grt)
and badly damaged British steamer GRAIGWEN (3697grt) in
58‑11N, 13‑57W. GRAIGWEN was sunk late on the
10th by U.123. One crewman was lost on ZANNES GOUNARIS,
the entire crew of DELPHIN was rescued, and seven crew
were lost on the British steamer.

_____

Steamer
ALDERNEY QUEEN (663grt) was sunk by German
bombing off Grassholm Island, North Wales, 51-38-30N,
5-25-30W. The entire crew was rescued.

Convoy
SLS 51 departed Freetown on the 9th. Sloop ROCHESTER
escorted the convoy on 30 and 31 October, when it
arrived at Liverpool.

Thursday,
10 October

In
Operation MEDIUM, battleship REVENGE with destroyers
JAVELIN, JAGUAR, JUPITER, KASHMIR, KELVIN, KIPLING,
Motor Anti-Submarine Boats 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 51
departed Plymouth on the 10th. The battleship group was
covered to the west by light cruisers NEWCASTLE and
EMERALD with destroyers WANDERER, BROKE, BURZA, GARLAND
which departed Devonport on the 10th and to the east by
light cruiser CARDIFF and destroyers VANOC and VOLUNTEER
which departed Portsmouth on the 9th.

From
0333 to 0351 on the 11th, the REVENGE group bombarded
Cherbourg. German torpedo boats put to sea from
Cherbourg and briefly attacked the minesweeping force
before retiring. The battleship force returned to
Portsmouth and the cruiser force to Plymouth on the
11th. The CARDIFF group returned to Portsmouth.

_____

Destroyer
JERSEY departed the Humber after repairs, but on the
11th she was damaged off East Knob Buoy by the explosion
of a mine close aboard. She went to London for repairs
arriving on the 13th, was repaired in fifteen days, and
arrived at Plymouth on the 29th for duty with the 5th
Destroyer Flotilla.

_____

Destroyer
DOUGLAS departed Greenock at 0630 to join the Home Fleet
at Scapa Flow, where she arrived at 1000/11th.

Convoy
FN.305 departed Southend, escorted by destroyer
WINCHESTER, sloop EGRET, patrol sloop GUILLEMOT. The
patrol sloop was detached on the 11th. The convoy
arrived at Methil on the 12th.

_____

Convoy
FS.305 departed Methil, escorted by destroyers VANITY
and WOLFHOUND. The convoy arrived at Southend on the
12th.

_____

Submarine
H.28 on patrol in the Bay of Biscay fired torpedoes at a
1000 ton merchant ship, but no damage was done.

_____

In
British air attacks on Brest during the night of 9/10
October, German destroyer ECKHOLDT was damaged by near
misses and destroyers LODY and RIEDEL were splinter
damaged. Pilot Lt Cdr O. S. Stevinson, Squadron
Commander, Observer Lt Cdr N. R. Quill, and Petty
Officer A. Brimms in an Albacore of 829 Squadron were
shot down and made prisoners of war in this raid.

_____

Auxiliary
patrol vessel GIRL MARY (25grt, Acting Skipper
F. B. Plaskitt RNR) was lost on lost on a mine four
cables 255° from Inchcolm Monastery. Two ratings were
lost; Plaskitt and Temporary Lt E. C. A. Warren RNVR,
were wounded.

_____

MTB.22,
MTB.31, MTB.32 attacked a German convoy off Calais in
51‑02N, 01‑48E, sank German trawler NORDENHAM
(234grt) and captured thirty four prisoners.

_____

Steamer
TILL (367grt) was damaged on a mine in 51‑36N, 01‑12E.

_____

Australian
heavy cruiser AUSTRALIA arrived at Gibraltar from
Freetown and was temporarily assigned to Force H

_____

A
report was received that French light cruiser PRIMAUGUET
had departed Casablanca to escort a merchant ship
carrying torpedoes and shells for battleship RICHELIEU
and other warships at Dakar. Late on the 11th, heavy
cruiser AUSTRALIA departed Gibraltar and proceeded
towards Las Palmas. Early on the 12th, battlecruiser
RENOWN and destroyers WISHART, GALLANT, GRIFFIN, VIDETTE
departed Gibraltar.

Friday,
11 October

At
0920, destroyer ZULU, which was the fourth ship in a
line, was badly damaged by an acoustic mine 1.6 cables
064° from Beamer Rock in the Firth of Forth. The mine
exploded 40 feet off the starboard side abaft of the
bridge. There were no casualties. Many minor leaks,
machinery defects and distortion of the bulkheads were
caused by the explosion. ZULU was repaired at Rosyth,
completed in thirteen weeks on 18 January 1941.

_____

Destroyer
BEDOUIN was damaged when she struck a submerged object
in 56‑31N, 02‑15W, and was repaired at Southampton
completing on 17 November.

_____

British
minefield BS.40 was laid by minelayers TEVIOTBANK and
PLOVER and destroyers ICARUS and IMPULSIVE.

_____

Convoy
FN.306 departed Southend, escorted by destroyer WOOLSTON
and sloop BLACK SWAN. The convoy arrived at Methil on
the 13th.

_____

Convoy
FS.306 departed Methil, escorted by destroyer WOLSEY and
sloop LOWESTOFT. The convoy arrived at Southend on the
14th.

_____

German
torpedo boats FALKE, GREIF, KONDOR, SEEADLER and WOLF
departed Cherbourg for another sortie to the area off
the Isle of Wight.

Late
on the 11th, in an engagement with anti-submarine
trawler WARWICK DEEPING (445grt, Skipper J. R. Bruce
RNR) and former French armed trawler LISTRAC (778grt, Lt
K. P. Kirkup RNR), both of the 17th Anti Submarine
Group, in 50‑25N, 01‑50W, torpedo boat GREIF sank LISTRAC
with a torpedo, and torpedo boats KONDOR and FALKE sank
WARWICK DEEPING with gunfire. Kirkup and eleven
ratings were lost on the LISTRAC; A/S/Lt R. J.
Pickford RCNVR and twenty four ratings were wounded. No
crew were lost in WARWICK DEEPING.

At
0007 on the 12th, the German force contacted and sank
French submarine chasers CH.6 (Lt W. B. G.
Galbraith, RN) and CH.7 (S/Lt G. A.
Gabbett-Mulhallen DSC, RN). The survivors of these ships
were picked up by German torpedo boat GREIF. Galbraith,
Temporary Acting S/Lt D. B. Walton RNVR and seven
ratings were lost on the CH.6; twelve crew were taken
prisoner. Gabbett-Mulhallen and eleven ratings were
killed on CH.7; Acting Lt R. V. Musman RNVR and eight
ratings were taken prisoner from CH.7.

Destroyers
JACKAL, JAGUAR, JUPITER, KELVIN, KIPLING came out from
Plymouth and two destroyers departed Portsmouth. At 0314
on the 12th, destroyer JACKAL engaged two of the German
ships at 280°, 27 miles from 50N, 1W . Neither side was
damaged and the German ships arrived back at Cherbourg
mid-morning on the 12th.

_____

Aircraft
carrier ARGUS departed Greenock with destroyer ACHATES
for Iceland, arrived on the 17th and departed to return
on the 20th.

They

arrived back at Greenock
on the 25th. ACHATES was damaged by weather on the
voyage and was repaired at Greenock.

_____

Lt
A. F. Adie and Air Mechanic W. H. Souls were killed when
their Skua of 760 Squadron crashed on exercises near
Tewkesbury.

_____

Anti-aircraft
ship ALYNBANK departed Scapa Flow at 0930 to join convoy
HX.76 A. German bombers attacked the convoy off
Peterhead in 57-41N, 1-41W at 1927. Gunfire from the
escorts and the merchantmen in the convoy drove off the
attack. ALYNBANK sustained minor damage from near
misses, and repaired at Rosyth completing on the 20th.

_____

Destroyers
MATABELE and PUNJABI departed Scapa Flow at 0800
escorting RFA tanker MONTENOL (2646grt) to Skaalefjord
before proceeding to operation DH. At 1330, a German
submarine was reported by aircraft five miles north of
this force, 16 miles 020° from Sule Skerry. PUNJABI
investigated the contact without locating the submarine,
and then rejoined MATABELE and the tanker.

Aircraft
carrier FURIOUS, exercising west of Hoy, detached her
screen of destroyers SOMALI, ESKIMO and DUNCAN to
investigate the submarine report. The destroyers made no
contact and the ships returned to Scapa Flow at
0800/12th.

_____

Destroyer
VERSATILE departed Londonderry for refitting in the
Tyne.

_____

Destroyer
FEARLESS departed the Clyde at 1700 after refitting, and
then proceeded to Rosyth for Home Fleet operations in
the 4th Destroyer Flotilla.

_____

Steamer
THYRA II (1088grt) was damaged by German bombing off
East Barrow Light Vessel, Thames Estuary.

_____

U.48
in attacks on convoy HX.77, sank Norwegian steamer BRANDANGER
(4624grt) in 57‑10N, 17‑00W and British steamer PORT
GISBOURNE (10,144grt) in 56‑38N, 16‑40W. Six crew
were lost on the BRANDANGER and twenty six crew were
lost on PORT GISBOURNE. British tug SALVONIA picked up
survivors from PORT GISBOURNE.

_____

Armed
yacht AISHA (117grt) was lost in mining in the
Thames Estuary.

_____

Steamer
INVER (1543grt) was damaged by German shore guns in the
Straits of Dover.

Sloop
WELLINGTON escorted the convoy from 11 to 24 October.
Destroyer WRESTLER escorted the convoy from 22 to 24
October, which arrived at Gibraltar on the 24th.

_____

At
0915, during continuing Mediterranean Fleet operations,
destroyer DECOY was detached to Malta to refuel and
destroyer MOHAWK joined. At 0942, destroyer IMPERIAL was
detached to refuel.

IMPERIAL
was mined at 1105 on the 11th and badly damaged fifteen
miles south of Delimara near Malta. One rating was
killed in the explosion. She was towed to Malta by
DECOY, and IMPERIAL was repaired at Malta, sailing after
completion on 28 April.

Destroyer
VAMPIRE was detached at 1410 to refuel at Malta.

Convoy
MF 3 and light cruiser ORION arrived at Malta at 1600.
Australian destroyers VENDETTA and STUART arrived with
the convoy to start refitting in the Malta dockyard.

At
1800, destroyer NUBIAN, HERO and HAVOCK rejoined
the Main Fleet and destroyers DAINTY, DEFENDER, DIAMOND
were detached to refuel.

An
Italian civilian plane reported the British
Mediterranean Fleet 100 miles southeast of Malta.

In
anticipation that these warships would pick up some
merchant ships recently arrived at Malta, Italian
destroyers ARTIGLIERE, CAMICIA NERA, AVIERE and GENIERE
with torpedo boats AIRONE, ALCIONE and ARIEL were
patrolling an area east of Malta. Four MAS boats were to
the north of the Italian force. One destroyer division
and MAS boats were stationed to the west of Malta should
the British force set out for Gibraltar.

Convoy
FS.307 departed Methil, escorted by destroyer VIVIEN and
sloop LONDONDERRY. The convoy arrived at Southend on the
14th.

_____

Hunt-class
destroyer MENDIP was completed. She worked up at Scapa
Flow, but was badly damaged by the explosion of one of
her own depth charges on the 24th. She was assigned to
the 21st Destroyer Flotilla and joined the Flotilla
following completion of repairs.

_____

Destroyer
BULLDOG departed Rosyth at 1500 to join submarine CLYDE
off Dundee at 1830, and escorted the submarine to Cape
Wrath. BULLDOG arrived at Scapa Flow at 1730/13th.

_____

Destroyer
QUORN departed Scapa Flow at 0900 for Aberdeen, and left
there at 1500 with steamer LOCHNAGAR for Lerwick.

_____

Minesweeper
KELLET hit the pier at Leith, and had to be docked for
repairs.

Destroyers
WISHART, GALLANT, GRIFFIN, VIDETTE were detached from
battlecruiser RENOWN, with GALLANT and GRIFFIN picking
up the survivors, and WISHART scuttling the Yugoslavian
vessel.

The
destroyers were then ordered to meet arriving transports
ETTRICK and KARANJA, being escorted by destroyer
GREYHOUND. The destroyers, plus destroyer FIREDRAKE,
rejoined on 0724 on the 13th and the force met the
transport convoy at 1300. VIDETTE was detached to join
the transport convoy and the next day, WISHART was
detached to join as well.

_____

Steamer
STARLING (1320grt) was damaged by German bombing four
miles southwest of San Sebastian Light.

_____

Convoy
HX.80 departed Halifax escorted by Canadian destroyers
ST CROIX and NIAGARA and auxiliary patrol boats HUSKY
and REINDEER. The local escort was detached on the 13th.
Ocean escort was armed merchant cruiser LACONIA, which
was detached on the 22nd. On 23 October, destroyers
CASTLETON and WANDERER, sloop HASTINGS, corvettes FLEUR
DE LYS and PICOTEE, and anti-submarine yacht PHILANTE
joined the convoy, which arrived at Liverpool on the
27th.

_____

Anti-aircraft
cruiser CALCUTTA was subjected to high level Italian
bombing near Crete on the 12th.

Italian
and British Naval forces engaged east of Malta. In the
first phase of the battle between the Italian torpedo
boats and radar-equipped light cruiser AJAX (Captain E.
D. B. McCarthy) which was proceeding to cover the
eastbound convoy, Italian torpedo boats ARIEL
and AIRONE were sunk in 35‑37N, 16‑42E, with
AJAX hit three times, twice on the bridge and once
amidships starting a fire. Temporary Instructor Lt M. P.
Gamon, B. Sc., Acting Temporary S/Lt G. H. K. Strathey
RCNVR, and ten ratings were lost, with Lt Cdr J. G. T.
Inglis, Commissioned Gunner C. W. Lewis, and twenty two
ratings wounded. Italian torpedo boat ALCIONE picked up
the survivors of AIRONE.

In
the second phase of the battle between the Italian
destroyers which were coming to the aid of the torpedo
boats and AJAX, Italian destroyer AVIERE was damaged and
escorted back to base by undamaged destroyer GENIERE.
Destroyer ARTIGLIERE was badly damaged and destroyer
CAMICIA NERA stood by and later attempted to take her
into tow. AJAX was hit four times in this phase putting
out action, one four inch gun and her radar.

Early
on the 13th while under tow, Italian destroyer
ARTIGLIERE was subjected to fierce air attacks from
aircraft carrier ILLUSTRIOUS after being located by a
Sunderland flying boat. Alerted by ILLUSTRIOUS's report,
heavy cruiser YORK (Captain R. H. Portal), AJAX, and
four destroyers including VAMPIRE and NUBIAN, located
ARTIGLIERE.

Destroyer
CAMICIA NERA cast off her tow and retired, leaving ARTIGLIERE
to be torpedoed and sunk in 35‑47N, 16‑25E by YORK,
VAMPIRE and NUBIAN. Rafts were dropped and the crew was
later picked up by an Italian hospital ship. AJAX and
Australian cruiser SYDNEY pursued CAMICIA NERA but did
not catch her.

The
Italian 3rd Cruiser Division, heavy cruisers BOLZANO,
TRENTO and TRIESTE with destroyers VIVALDI, DA NOLI and
TARIGO of the 14th Destroyer Flotilla departed Messina
to support destroyers ARTIGLIERE and CAMICIA NERA, but
did not arrive in time and did not contact the British
force.

Light
cruisers ORION, SYDNEY and AJAX rejoined the Main Fleet
during the morning of 12 October.

Anti-aircraft
cruiser CURACOA departed Scapa Flow at 0830 and met
convoy WN.22 in Pentland Firth to provide anti-aircraft
protection for the convoy to the Firth of Firth.

_____

In
Operation D.N, destroyers COSSACK (Captain P. L. Vian,
D.4), ASHANTI, MAORI and SIKH departed the Firth of
Forth the evening of 13 October to strike at German
shipping off Egero Light. During the night of 13/14
October, the destroyers attacked a convoy of three ships
and two small escorts four miles off the Light.

While
the British ships claimed sinking at least two merchant
ships, only German netlayer GENUA (1949grt) was sunk and
she was later salved. The only British casualty was a
single shell hit in the stern of COSSACK with a stoker
wounded. The British force safely returned to Rosyth
arriving on the 14th. COSSACK's rudder was repaired at
Rosyth completing on the 25th.

_____

Scapa
Flow, except for a small area northeast of the Barrell
of Butter, was declared free of mines and anti-submarine
exercises were permitted.

Convoy
OB.228 departed Liverpool escorted by sloops FOLKESTONE
and LEITH, corvette HEARTSEASE, anti-submarine trawler
SPHENE. The escort, less FOLKESTONE, detached on the
16th and she departed on the 17th.

_____

Convoy
FN.307 departed Southend, escorted by destroyers VANITY
and WOLFHOUND. The convoy arrived at Methil on the 16th.

Hopper
barge CARGO FLEET No. 2 (1130grt) was damaged on
a mine one cable west of Datum Buoy, off Tees. There
were no casualties on the barge, which was taken in tow,
but went ashore at Tees entrance, a total loss.

_____

Light
cruiser AJAX and destroyers JERVIS and JUNO met convoy
AS 4 of four steamers from Piraeus, which had sailed
that morning. At sea, they rendezvoused with
anti-aircraft cruiser COVENTRY. Convoy AS 4 joined
convoy ME 4 east of Gavdo Island.

Steamer
VOLO of ME 4 was sent ahead of the convoy to Alexandria
with anti-aircraft ship WRYNECK. Anti-aircraft ship
CALCUTTA remained with the convoy.

On
15 October, destroyer MOHAWK was detached from the Main
Fleet to relieve JERVIS. Convoy AS 4 arrived at Port
Said on the 16th.

_____

Australian
light cruiser SYDNEY arrived at Alexandria.

Monday,
14 October

Destroyer
DOUGLAS made high speed runs in Scapa Flow in view of
suspected minelaying, to fire acoustic mines. No mines
were located.

_____

Destroyer
MENDIP arrived at Scapa Flow at 0730 to work up.

_____

Rear
Admiral I. B. B. Tower of PRESIDENT was killed in an air
raid on London.

Convoy
FN.308 departed Southend, escorted by destroyer WOLSEY
and sloop LOWESTOFT. The convoy arrived at Methil on the
16th.

_____

Convoy
FS.309 departed Methil, escorted by destroyers VERDUN
and WATCHMAN. The convoy arrived at Southend on the
16th.

_____

U.138
torpedoed armed merchant cruiser CHESHIRE (10, 552grt)
in 55‑13N, 13‑02W. Canadian destroyer SKEENA and
corvette PERIWINKLE took off two hundred and twenty crew
and the AMC was successfully towed to Belfast Lough
where she was beached.

She

was taken on to
Liverpool for repairs requiring six months.

_____

Steamer
RECULVER (683grt) was sunk on a mine 1.2 miles
195° from Spurn Point Light House. The entire crew was
rescued.

Early
on the 14th, aircraft carriers ILLUSTRIOUS, escorted by
cruisers GLOUCESTER and LIVERPOOL and destroyers NUBIAN,
HAVOCK, HERO, HEREWARD launched air strikes against
Leros. The raid was successful and the ships returned to
the Main Force at 0840/14th. At 0900, heavy cruiser
YORK, which was short of fuel, and destroyer DEFENDER
were detached to Alexandria.

Destroyers
VAMPIRE and VENDETTA attacked submarine contacts at
1132.

At
1855 on the 14th, LIVERPOOL was torpedoed by an Italian
torpedo plane in the Aegean, in 33‑58N, 26‑23E. A fire
was started and an explosion of her petrol and
ammunition wrecked the bow which later broke away just
ahead of the bridge. Lt Cdr A. H. Browne, Midshipman R.
C. Norris, Lt Cdr (E) P. Ross, and twenty four ratings
were lost, with three more ratings dying of wounds.
Forty two ratings were wounded.

Destroyers
HEREWARD and DECOY were sent to stand by the cruiser.
Tug ST ISSEY was dispatched at 2345 on the 14th.

LIVERPOOL
was taken in tow stern first by light cruiser ORION and
screened by anti-aircraft cruiser CALCUTTA. She arrived
at Alexandria on the 16th, with destroyers DAINTY,
DECOY, DIAMOND, VAMPIRE, which had been sailed from
Alexandria at 1420 and joined at 1900/15th. After
temporary repairs at Alexandria, completed in April
1941, LIVERPOOL proceeded to Mare Island, California for
repairs from 16 June to 15 November 1941.